Without being fully integrated into today’s global financial system, cryptocurrencies will struggle to achieve mainstream adoption and live up to their full potential.
This means not just to have a reliable two-way connection between fiat and crypto, but that these connections be everywhere.
Thanks to the proliferation of end-to-end crypto on-ramps, the experience of buying crypto today is incredibly more friendly and ubiquitous than it was just a few years ago.
But on-ramps are just half of the equation. To truly integrate crypto into the global financial system, we need the same to happen to off-ramps.
In this article, we’ll make the case for why widespread off-ramps are an absolutely essential piece to growing not just web3 businesses, but the entire space too.
Why off-ramps matter
The first thing users usually want to know about web3 is how to buy crypto. The second is how to sell it back to fiat. The reason is simple: fiat is still the kind of money they can actually use for most expenses in their lives.
Despite the increased ease when it comes to buying crypto, the same can’t be said about converting that crypto back into fiat.
Direct, seamless off-ramps - like our own - are still few and far between compared to the many easy on-ramping services on the market. And the alternative - finding an exchange with the right fiat trading pair, trading crypto to your exchange account, initiating a withdrawal that could be costly and take a long time - is full of friction and packed with hidden costs at every step.
This is not just a bottleneck for the growth of the industry as a whole, but also a huge missed opportunity for businesses looking to expand their crypto customer base.
Let’s dig deeper into the reasons for why integrating both an on-ramp and off-ramp into your application is a good idea for your business.
1. No one likes to feel locked in 🔒
“We don’t want our users to leave crypto! We want to keep them inside!”
This is akin to trying to increase store sales by locking the exit door. If that’s how you approach your users’ wants and needs, you better think again.
The truth is, crypto isn’t widely accepted as a means of exchange yet. Very few merchants accept crypto as payment - so people still need an off-ramp back to fiat.
Also, the idea that you’ll keep them in against their will if you don’t offer an exit is just flawed.
Seasoned users will simply take their crypto and sell it elsewhere, leaving your app in the process. You’re just making it more difficult and expensive for them.
And if newbie users can’t feel confident that they can just as easily convert their crypto back into fiat as they can when purchasing it on your app, then many won’t bother getting started.
Fundamentally, if the economic value generated within the crypto economy can’t easily and seamlessly flow outwards in the same way that fiat can flow inwards, then crypto adoption may grind to a halt.
So do your users (and yourself) a favor and let them choose to come and go as they please. They’ll trust you and thank you for it.
2. People love convenience 😎
There are entire industries dedicated to making life easier and more convenient in myriad ways, and there’s good reason for it: convenience is king - everybody knows that.
Most people are willing and happy to pay extra for a smoother experience, to save time, or avoid extra work (such as having to research and hop through exchanges).
Having an in-app off-ramp ticks all the boxes above.
Of course, you can create guides to teach your users how to go through the entire journey of selling crypto via an exchange. Your customers will definitely like you for that.
But if you want them to love you, nothing beats offering an off-ramp directly within your app with just the click of a button.
3. Make the move before your competitors 🏁
If easy on-ramps are one side of the coin to help us achieve mass crypto adoption, then off-ramps are the other side.
On-ramps have spread throughout the ecosystem, creating countless one-way connections between fiat and crypto.
Now, off-ramps are coming full circle and turning these connections into two-way bridges, removing friction from crypto and enabling a truly integrated digital economy.
Conceptually, having little local bridges closer to a user’s end goal (such as within your app) is more useful and a better experience than breaking their journey and sending them somewhere else in order to achieve their goal.
Plus, your users only need to go through KYC once to have access to both on- and off-ramps - everybody wins. Consumers realize that, and your competitors do, too. It’s not a matter of if, but when.
Integrate off-ramp now and avoid having to play catch-up with the competition later.
Early integrators include industry staples like Trust Wallet, Ledger, and Brave.
4. Don’t give users a reason to leave your app 🚪
Let’s say you’ve invested countless hours into designing the perfect user experience to cover all your users’ wants and needs. However, when it comes to cashing out, the exit is nowhere to be seen.
To move back to fiat, your user has to leave your app and find other service, adding friction and casting doubt over when (or whether) they’re coming back.
Don’t give them excuses to leave; instead, offer them them reasons to stay with a 360-degree service.
By offering them not just a way in, but also a seamless way out of crypto, not only do you keep your users inside your platform for longer, but you ensure they don’t even have to look elsewhere for their crypto needs.
5. Help users avoid risk (of third-party custodian exposure) ⚠️
This is a big one right now. The reliance on centralized custody for user onboarding and offboarding is one of the problems that led to the current crypto backlash and market conditions.
Imagine a user having to go through the clunky experience of needing a centralized exchange to cash out - right when it fails, or is hacked.
This might not be tied directly to your app, but from that point on, that user will surely feel discouraged from using crypto altogether - including yourself.
With an off-ramp feature within your app, there’s no need for your users to go to an exchange or anywhere where they don’t have complete control of their private keys. They can have a completely secure and self-custodial journey, from start to finish.
6. Help your users actually use their earnings 🤝
If we’re to achieve our democratizing vision for web3, in which users get to own and monetize the value generated by their own work, we need this value to be easily converted to and from currencies that are widely accepted also outside the digital realm.
For crypto projects in which the whole point is to enable users to earn (such as DeFi, play-to-earn games, staking DApps, etc) off-ramps are even more crucial. What’s the point in earning money if a user can’t spend it in real life?
7. Earn additional revenue while at it 💰
Finally, if all these reasons don’t get your attention, then here’s another one: your business can earn additional revenue from integrating off-ramp.
We already offer eligible partners the option to add a fee-on-top when users purchase crypto from within their application, and we’re making this available to off-ramp as well.
Integrating with off-ramp provides another opportunity for you to monetize your app and add an additional revenue stream. Please reach out to us if you believe you qualify for the fee-on-top.
Still unsure? 🤔
Off-ramp is a new and exciting feature for our ecosystem that we have recently launched globally across 133 countries, and with 38 assets from the get-go.
Bundled with our leading on-ramp product, we offer competitive pricing, 24/7 customer support, and a rigorously compliant crypto experience.
Integrating the new off-ramp is very simple for both new and current Ramp partners. For apps that have a native wallet built-in, users don’t even have to manually transfer funds - they can just confirm the transaction straight from within your app.
Haven’t integrated yet? Click the button below to check out off-ramp and get started.
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Content Lead at Ramp Network. Writer, Web3 & Blockchain educator.
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